NORTH LAWNDALE — The Lagunitas Brewing Company will close its West Side taproom after 10 years as the brewery consolidates its operations back to California.
The taproom at 2607 W. 17th St. in North Lawndale will close permanently Thursday, spokesperson Margo Jones said in a statement.
Brewing operations will return to Lagunitas’ original brew house in Petaluma, California, by early August, Jones said. The brewery will continue operating its Chicago facility as a warehouse and distribution center, but it will no longer produce beer or serve as a taproom.
The move will impact 86 employees, some of whom will be offered incentives for remote roles or to relocate to California, Jones said. An undisclosed number of workers will receive “departure packages,” Jones said.
“We are committed to managing this transition thoughtfully, smoothly and with deep respect for our valued Chicago Lagunitas employees,” Sam Kennedy, a Lagunitas spokesperson, said in the statement.
The change was made to “future-proof” the craft beverage company and allow for a “more efficient and flexible supply chain,” Jones said. It also comes amid challenges for the national and local craft beer industry, with Chicago seeing a number of high-profile brewery closures in recent years.
Founded in 1993 by Rogers Park native Tony Magee, Lagunitas opened a local operation in 2014 as the growing California brand looked to expand into the Midwest and East Coast.
Dutch multinational brewing company Heineken completed a buyout of Lagunitas in 2017. Magee originally stayed on as an executive chairman but has since stepped away because it’s now “their bat and ball.”
The closure in Chicago “is disappointing,” Magee said.
“I think the wild growth in the craft brewing industry, which was a historic thing, led to a classic tragedy of the commons,” he said. “Craft beer is now ordinary.”
Drying the ink on the massive West Side facility — with 300,000 square-feet and 50-foot ceilings — was Magee’s “chance to come home,” he said.
The facility produced beer for Lagunitas’ markets east of the Mississippi River, a company official previously told Block Club.
“It was a magical place,” Magee said. “You had a hard time just throwing a rock across the building. I bought three go-carts and we had races inside. I did donuts in my Jeep.”
Featuring a long and colorful entranceway inspired by Willy Wonka, the facility was Lagunitas’ only taproom that gave patrons a front-row view of the brewery, with the taproom situated above and open to its massive first floor brewing operation.
The Chicago taproom lumbered through an extended closure during the pandemic, reopening in late 2022.
A Lagunitas spokesperson said the brand is not exiting the Chicago market with the move.
“Chicago remains a priority market for Lagunitas, and the company will continue servicing the many partner bars, restaurants, and stores in and around Chicagoland with its fresh and high-quality hop-forward IPAs and other brews,” Jones said.
Lagunitas is the latest beer market to shut down operations as the golden age of craft brewing appears to be fizzling out.
Ørkenoy, founded by former Lagunitas Brewing employees Ryan Sanders and Jonny Ifergan, closed last month after four years in Humboldt Park.
Metropolitan Brewing closed late last year after 15 years in business. Other breweries to close in 2023 include Pilsen’s Lo Rez Brewing and Ravenwood’s Empiral Brewery.
“The pandemic kicked the stool out from underneath people at the bar,” Magee said.
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